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Professor Frink
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==Role in ''The Simpsons''== John Frink is generally depicted as Springfield's stereotypical nerdy, mad, and socially inept scientist, inventor, and mathematician.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Chick |author2=Mahe |author3=Burr |author4=Thomas |title=First Black Carp Captured in U.S. |journal=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |date=2003-06-27 |volume=300 |pages=1876β1877 |doi=10.1126/science.300.5627.1876 |issue=5627 |pmid=12817125|s2cid=37013973 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=J. Greenwald |first=Sarah |author2=Nestler, Andrew |title=Engaging students with significant mathematical content from the Simpsons |journal=[[PRIMUS (journal)|PRMIUS]] |volume=14 |issue=1 |pages=29β39 |doi=10.1080/10511970408984074 |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]]|year=2004 |s2cid=120667283 }}</ref>{{sfn|Richmond & Coffman|1997 |p=89}} He wears thick glasses, a white lab coat (which was green in earlier seasons),{{sfn|Richmond & Coffman|1997 |p=89}}<ref name="Tuscaloosa"/> a blue bow-tie atop a white buttoned-up shirt, and pink pants,<ref>{{cite news |title=May the best 'Simpson' win |newspaper=[[RedEye]] |date=2007-07-13 |page=48}}</ref> and has buckteeth<ref name="Hollingworth"/> and center-parted hair. Frink is a college professor at [[Springfield Heights Institute of Technology]]<ref name="MuchApu">{{cite episode |title=Much Apu About Nothing |episode-link=Much Apu About Nothing |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=07 |number=23}}</ref> and runs his own [[astronomical observatory]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Halpern|2007 |p=157}}</ref> He has an [[Intelligence quotient|IQ]] of 197{{snd}}it was 199 before he sustained a concussion during the collapse of Springfield's brief intellectual [[Military dictatorship|junta]]{{snd}}and is a member of the Springfield chapter of [[Mensa International|Mensa]].<ref name="Lisa's_Brain">{{cite episode |title=They Saved Lisa's Brain |episode-link=They Saved Lisa's Brain |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=10 |number=22}}</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Halpern|2007 |p=221}}</ref> Frink is generally very polite and friendly. He has a trademark mannerism of using [[Jerry Lewis]]-style [[gibberish]] when excited,{{sfn|Richmond & Coffman|1997 |p=89}}<ref name="RadioTimes"/><ref>{{cite web |last=Toomey |first=Jonathan |title=Numb3rs: Power |url=http://www.tvsquad.com/2008/01/19/numb3rs-power/ |publisher=[[TV Squad]] |access-date=2010-08-02 |date=2008-01-19}}</ref> such as "HOYVIN-GLAVIN!" and "FLAVIN" and impulsively shouting other words that have no relevance to the situation at hand.<ref name="Snyder"/><ref name="#30"/> He also occasionally refers to the importance of remembering to "[[carry (arithmetic)|carry the one]]" in various mathematical calculations.<ref name="TroubleTrillions">{{cite episode |title=The Trouble with Trillions |episode-link=The Trouble with Trillions |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=09 |number=20}}</ref><ref name="ItchyScratchy">{{cite episode |title=Itchy & Scratchy Land |episode-link=Itchy & Scratchy Land |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=06 |number=04}}</ref> When he rambles he often speaks incoherently in [[run-on sentence]]s without pauses.<ref name="Snyder">{{cite news |last=Snyder |first=S. James |title=Delving deep 'Simpsons' universe |newspaper=[[The New York Sun]] |date=2007-07-20}}</ref> Frink also has a tendency to over-complicate simple matters and use or invent scientific terminology while expressing various concepts, e.g. "Father and I got along like [[positron]]s and [[antineutrino]]s!"<ref name="toh14">{{cite episode |title=Treehouse of Horror XIV |episode-link=Treehouse of Horror XIV |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=15 |number=01}}</ref> or "microcalifragilistics".<ref name="wizard">{{cite episode |title=The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace |episode-link=The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=10 |number=02}}</ref> Frink often tries to use his mad and bizarre inventions to aid the town in its crises,<ref name="IGN"/> but they usually do not work or only make things worse.{{sfn|Richmond & Coffman|1997 |p=89}} Most of his inventions never function properly or are of no real use.{{sfn|Richmond & Coffman|1997 |p=89}}{{sfn|Turner|2004|p=213}} He is the inventor of, among other things, a frog exaggerator (which grossly misrepresents the size of amphibians),<ref name="Tuscaloosa">{{cite news |last=Hughes Cobb |first=Mark |title=Website examines 'Simpsons' character |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=-IIfAAAAIBAJ&pg=2425,5602996&dq=simpsons+professor-frink&hl=en |access-date=2010-08-01 |newspaper=[[The Tuscaloosa News]] |date=2001-01-26}}</ref> automatic tapping shoes for tap dancing,<ref>{{cite web |title=Last Tap Dance in Springfield |url=http://www.channel4.com/programmes/the-simpsons/episode-guide/series-11/episode-20 |publisher=[[Channel 4]] |access-date=2010-08-02}}</ref> the sarcasm detector,<ref name="Rutherford">{{cite news |last=Rutherford |first=Adam |title=Is this the ultimate lab? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2004/aug/26/sciencefictionspecial.sciencefictionfantasyandhorror1 |access-date=2010-08-02 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |date=2004-08-24}}</ref> hamburger [[earmuffs]],<ref>{{Harvnb|Halpern|2007 |p=73}}</ref> the [[Abortifacient|8-month-after pill]],<ref name="Finley">{{cite web |last=Finley |first=Adam |title=The Simpsons: Springfield Up |url=http://www.tvsquad.com/2007/02/19/the-simpsons-springfield-up/ |publisher=[[TV Squad]] |access-date=2010-08-08 |date=2007-02-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080218110020/http://www.tvsquad.com/2007/02/19/the-simpsons-springfield-up/ |archive-date=18 February 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> and a drilling machine that can cut through anything.<ref name="locus"/> Some of Frink's unsuccessful inventions include his small [[Radio-controlled aircraft|remote-controlled plane]] that carries babies as passengers (it crashed),<ref name="BrotherDimes"/> the "Gamble-Tron 2000", a machine designed to predict pro [[American football|football]] scores (after it predicts one team will win by 200 points, Frink physically attacks it on live television),<ref name="LisaTheGreek">{{cite episode |title=Lisa the Greek |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=03 |number=14}}</ref> and a burglar-proof house that sprouts legs and runs away from potential danger (the legs of which collapsed causing the house to crash to the ground and catch fire).<ref name="HomerVigilante">{{cite episode |title=Homer the Vigilante |episode-link=Homer the Vigilante |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=05 |number=11}}</ref> As a scientist, Frink has discovered and cured "Frink's Disease" and discovered the element "Frinkonium".<ref name="SpringfieldUp">{{cite episode |title=Springfield Up |episode-link=Springfield Up |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=18 |number=13}}</ref> He has also mastered [[astrology]] to the point where he can use it to accurately predict the future,<ref name="Future-Drama">{{cite episode |title=Future-Drama |episode-link=Future-Drama |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=16 |number=15}}</ref> and has been shown to be capable of time travel.<ref name="SpringfieldUp"/> The professor has a son who is seen in "[[Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?]]" during a convention for infant and toddler products as a pilot of a remote-controlled plane (he flies out the window of the building while in the plane and crashes),<ref name="BrotherDimes">{{cite episode |title=Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes? |episode-link=Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes? |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=03 |number=24}}</ref> and in "[[I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot]]" at a robot battle (operating the robot).<ref name="Bot">{{cite episode |title=I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot |episode-link=I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=15 |number=09}}</ref> On the show, Frink has made mention of a wife,<ref name="BrotherDimes"/><ref name="Money">{{cite episode |title=Old Money |episode-link=Old Money (The Simpsons) |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=02 |number=17}}</ref> but there have also been jokes about him having had little contact with women in his life.<ref name="SpringfieldUp"/><ref name="BlunderYears">{{cite episode |title=The Blunder Years |episode-link=The Blunder Years |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |network=Fox |season=13 |number=05}}</ref> Frink often appears in the ''[[Treehouse of Horror (series)|Treehouse of Horror]]'' Halloween episodes of ''The Simpsons'',<ref>{{Harvnb|Halpern|2007 |p=45}}</ref><ref name="Halpern111">{{Harvnb|Halpern|2007 |p=111}}</ref><ref name="ABCNews"/> which are not accepted as [[Canon (fiction)|canon]] and always take place outside the normal continuity of the show.<ref name="Groening1">Groening, Matt (2002). [[Audio commentary]] for "[[Treehouse of Horror]]", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Second Season'' [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.</ref> Frink's bizarre inventions and understanding of advanced physics usually fit well into these supernatural plotlines.<ref name="Homer3D">Groening, Matt; Oakley, Bill; Weinstein, Josh; Cohen, David; Anderson, Bob; Silverman, David (2005). [[Audio commentary]] for "[[Treehouse of Horror VI]]", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Seventh Season'' [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.</ref> In "[[Treehouse of Horror VIII]]", [[Bart Simpson|Bart]] enters Frink's matter teleporter and β echoing the film ''[[The Fly (1986 film)|The Fly]]'' β it results in an accidental mix between Bart's genes and the genes of a housefly that was also present in the transporter at the same time.<ref name="Halpern111"/> In "[[Treehouse of Horror XIV]]", it is revealed that Frink had a father who was killed by a shark, whom he brings back to life in the episode by piecing together his body parts. Unfortunately, the man decides to steal body parts to improve himself after he is revived.<ref name=toh14/><ref name="ABCNews"/> In the latter episode, Frink is awarded a [[Nobel Prize]].<ref name="ABCNews">{{cite news |last=Phillips |first=Ashley |title=Science and 'The Simpsons': A match made in Springfield |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=3417088&page=1 |access-date=2010-07-31 |publisher=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] |date=2007-07-26}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Friedman |first=Claire |title=Chem professor nets 'Simpsons' cameo |url=http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2003/11/3/chem-professor-nets-simpsons-cameo-nobel/ |access-date=2010-08-02 |newspaper=[[The Harvard Crimson]] |date=2003-11-03}}</ref>
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